New Delhi: With the aim to crack down on cases related to terror and its funding, narcotics and fake Indian currency notes and to increase conviction rates, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has stepped in to create a national database, officials in the Home Ministry said.
They said that the Union Home Secretary chaired a meeting last week wherein the heads of the Intelligence Bureau, National Investigation Agency, National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate (ED) participated and discussed the modalities to create an integrated national database. On April 21, Union Home Minister Amit Shah while speaking at the foundation day of NIA, said the MHA has been mulling to create a national database related to internal security covering bomb blasts, terror funding, fake currency, narcotics, hawala, arms smuggling, and terrorism. He had said the database will help the central agencies and police in the states and union territories in investigations.
According to MHA officials, the NATGRID, IB and NIA are preparing a database of seven major crime fields to help the investigation agencies in probes, based on the data of crimes and criminals involved in it. The NIA will be the custodian of the data related to drug trafficking, terrorist incidents and other cases on an integrated platform and will be available to the probe agencies at a single click. “Once the database is prepared, the probe agencies will have all information about the suspect including his all records related to crimes at one click,” the officials said.
The second round of the meeting is expected in June in the Home Ministry where the Union Home Secretary will review the progress with stakeholders. The NIA has been given the responsibility to create the database with the cooperation of other central police agencies.
(IANS)
